Hopps & Wilde: ZPD Pilot
by Gryphinwyrm7
Summary: A new drug has hit the streets of Zootopia. One with very familiar and terrifying effects. The ZPD is doing all that it can to track down the dealers and producers, but their leads are coming up short. Meanwhile a mysterious new crime lord is attempting to move in on Mr. Big's territory. Animated series concept, with each 10 chapter fanfic serving as an episode.
1. Primal

_**Hops & Wilde: ZPD**_

Duke Weaselton was not having a good day. Which wasn't that unusual for him, but today was a new low. Dumpster diving behind the BugaBurger in Savannah Central.

Not that he really had much choice. His bootleg DVDs had been confiscated, and he was one of the city's most recognizable criminals. Supplying the former mayor with the plants used to produce a city-wild pandemic had put his face on every cop's radar within the city limits.

And that wasn't even the worst part. Mr. Big, Tundratown's most notorious gangster and one of the most dangerous mammals in the city, was really _fond_ of Zootopia's new lagomorph law enforcement officer. There was talk that he was going legit, and dismantling his criminal operations. But not before putting the squeeze on the competition.

And as Mr. Big was very aware of Duke's role in supplying the Night Howlers to Doug the ram, he was very much a target of the mobster's hired goons, Kevin and Raymond.

Since Mr. Big employed polar bears, Duke had taken to hiding out in Savannah Central and Sahara Square, where the intense climate controlled heating systems made it impractical for polar bears to linger too long. Which let him avoid Mr. Big's enforcers, but not so easily the cops. Hence the dumpster diving.

"A half-eaten locust-burger with cheese and jalapeños," he commented out loud. "Or a cricket salad with…Are those croutons? God I hope those are croutons."

He slunk out of the dumpster with his 'prizes' and slid to the ground. "I feel like a common possum, dumpster diving for his lunch."

"Hmph!" came the indignant snort of a mother opossum who had been jogging by, her three children poking their heads out of her fanny pack and looking intently at the weasel.

"NO INTENSE OFFENDED!" Duke shouted as the opossum continued jogging away.

"Ugh" he groaned, picking at the half eaten locust burger, but not actually eating it. He vaguely wondered what kind of mammal had thrown it out in the first place. Then he wondered if he actually wanted to know the answer.

"Oh how the mighty have fallen." A distorted voice said. Duke scrambled to his feet, to face his visitor.

It was a goat. A tall, black furred goat, stood and faced Duke. It stared blankly at Duke with those horizontal rectangular pupils. Those pupils had always freaked Duke out. Even when he'd been delivering Night Howler bulbs to Doug, he'd never been able to look the ram in the eyes.

The goat wore a fancy pinstriped suit and fedora, with a red handkerchief in his breast pocket. He held an iPaw in his hooves, holding the screen towards Duke.

"This is what you have become? A common dumpster diver? A sad pathetic ending to the sad pathetic life of Duke _Wessel_ ton." the distorted voice from the phone asked.

"It's _WEASEL_ TON!" Duke snapped at the common mispronunciation of his name, "And I wasn't exactly the king of the weasels to begin with. Petty thief and bootleg DVD salesmammal. That was me."

"And yet with your skills, you could be so much more," the distorted voice said. "Mr. Big is weak. His organization is on the edge of collapse. I intend to pick up the pieces when it does collapse. And I could use a weasel with your skills. Are you interested?"

Duke hesitated. It was never a good idea to cross mobsters like Mr. Big, but at the same time, he didn't have a lot of options, with both the cops and the mob gunning for him.

"I'll even have Mr. Gompers here buy you something to eat," the distorted voice said, distainfully.

"Sold!" Duke snapped. "I'm in…Whoever you are?"

"Oh, you can just call me…The Big Mammal."

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"Nick did you steal the blueberries that my mother sent me?" Officer Judy Hopps was peeved. She tapped her foot impatiently as they stood by the water cooler of the bullpen of Precinct One in Downtown Zootopia.

"Would I do a thing like that?" Her partner smirked as he casually popped a blueberry into his mouth.

It was no secret that Nick had become rather addicted to the Hopps family farms blueberries, but stealing them from Judy was a new low.

"And what are you eating right now?"

"These are my blueberries," Nick said. "That your mother sent to me. Honestly Carrots, after all that we've been through together, how can you accuse me of just TAKING your blueberries when your mom is already sending me my own?"

"I'm sorry," Judy apologized. "It's just that this is the third time that someone has taken my lunch from the precinct fridge, and it is really starting to get to me."

"Wait," Nick smirked, "Was your lunch the Flipperware container marked 'Hopps'?"

"Yes," Judy said hesitantly…

"Oh then yes, I totally took your blueberries." Nick said putting on his best fox grin and popping the last berry into his muzzle.

"NICK!"

"And look at that." Nick said as Chief Bogo lumbered in. "Time for roll call."

The fox pulled his shades out of his uniform pocket and slipped them on, narrowly avoiding the grasp of his partner's paws as she reached out to strangle him.

He casually hopped up onto a chair at the front of the bullpen, and leaned back, his signature smirk still on his face.

Judy hopped up onto the same chair (a chair designed for megafauna such as buffalo and hippos easily held both a fox and a rabbit) and gave him a death glare that he knew that she didn't actually mean.

"Relax Carrots," He said, calling her by his familiar playful nickname. "This great new kudu place opened up in Savannah Square. I'll take you there fore lunch. My treat."

"All right, all right," Chief Bogo snorted. "Everyone quiet."

The room full of gigantic hippos, tigers, lions, wolves, bears, elephants, all fell silent as the imposing Cape Buffalo spoke.

"We have two items on the docket this morning," Bogo said. "First and foremost, we've had a rash of jewelry thefts all throughout Zootopia. At this point, the thieves have hit almost every district on the map. They don't leave and prints or fur behind, and they never strike the same district twice. This is priority one. I want these thieves found."

"McHorn, Snarlton," Bogo said. "I want you hitting the pawn shops. Seeing if anyone is hawking the stolen goods. Tusker, Howlington, I want you on undercover work. Get in touch with some of our CIs. Find out if they know anything…."

Nick glanced at Judy, both of them had noticed what Chief Bogo hadn't said. He hadn't mentioned the second item on the docket. It was unusual for him to just start handing out assignments before covering all the items on his list. He whittled away the list of present officers, until the rabbit and fox duo were the only ones remaining.

"Hopps, Wilde," he said. "My office."

The two of them looked at each other in surprise. This was very unusual behavior from their chief.

They followed the Cape Buffalo into his office, and closed the door.

"There's a new drug on the streets," He said quietly. "They're calling it 'Primal'. And the effects are…"

He handed Judy a casefile. She began flipping through it as Nick looked over her shoulder.

"'Causes mammals to temporarily become violent and savage…" She read out loud. Nick's usually laid back and joking demeanor was gone, there was a look of absolute horror on his face.

"Night Howlers?" Judy asked frowning. "But we…I mean, all of Bellwether's Rams were captured."

"We don't know anything about Primal," Chief Bogo said. "That's the problem. We know it's out there. We know that a lot of mammals, mostly teenagers, are using it, to get high…And that the physical effects are…Terrifyingly similar to the Night Howler concentrate that the Ex-Mayor's goons were using…But we have yet to acquire a sample of the drug for testing, and we have yet to catch a single dealer."

"Is it Night Howler extract?" Nick asked, removing his shades, frowning. "The effects of that drug were long lasting. We had to develop a vaccine and cure in order to reverse the effects. But this says that the users that we've brought in have regained their senses after a few hours."

"We think Primal may be derived from the same plant," Bogo said. "Concentrated, or diluted somehow. But the fact is, since we haven't actually been able to procure a sample of the drug, we can't know for sure. It's pure conjecture at this point."

"So this is our assignment then?" Judy asked. "Track down this drug, the dealers, the source?"

"I can't think of anyone else I'd rather have on this one, Hopps," Bogo said.

Nick and Judy gave each other the familiar 'I know what you're thinking glance.'

"You can count on us chief," Nick said. The pair darted out of Bogo's office.


	2. The Tip of the Iceburg

_**Hopps & Wilde: ZPD**_

Judy and Nick's patrol car pulled into the driveway of a large mansion in Snowy Hills; the wealthier gated community located within Tundratown.

Nick and Judy walked up to the door, a large polar bear—Raymond—Was quietly standing guard. But officer Hopps was a common and welcome sight at Mr. Big's mansion, the Arctic Shrew being very fond of the rabbit who had not only saved his daughter's life, but also all of Zootopia.

"Officer Hopps, Officer Wilde," the shrew pleasantly greeted them, as they entered his office.

"I can assume from your uniforms that you are here on official police business," he stated calmly. "And not here to visit your godchildren."

"I'm afraid so," Judy said. "We need some information."

"Nothing I say will be on the record," Mr. Big said. "As per my agreement with the ZPD to be your Confidential Informant."

'Confidential Informant' was just a pair of words thrown around. It was fairly well known that Mr. Big was quite close to Officer Hopps, she was the godmother to his grandchildren after all. It was also well known that as a favor to the rabbit, he was dismantling his criminal empire, and converting his 'legitimate businesses' into legitimate businesses. But the arctic shrew still had his paw on the pulse of the criminal world, which had provided Nick and Judy with several useful leads in their time on the force. And for his part, Mr. Big had been happy to help, both dismantle his empire (To leave a better legacy for his grandchildren) and to help the rabbit who had saved his daughter's life.

"We're trying to track down a lead on a drug called 'Primal'." Judy said. "Any leads or tips you could provide would be helpful."

""I know this drug," Mr. Big said quietly. "A new competitor of sorts has appeared on the criminal scene. They call him 'The Big Mammal'. A clear rip off of my own moniker, but an intimidating one nevertheless. I do not know who he is, but he is recruiting himself a small army of petty thugs and criminals. He is muscling in on my former territory and several of my former rackets. Indeed it seems he has already taken over several of the…Services, that I used to provide."

Nick and Judy glanced at each other.

"He is using this drug, this…Primal…To fund his operations. It commands a high price, both in the difficulty to procure, as well as the dangerous nature of the effects."

"It acts like night howler serum," Judy said quietly.

"This is what I have been told," Mr. Big said. "An associate of mine was injured by a user of this drug. Balthazar Baltoson. An arctic wolf, who is currently receiving treatment at Zootopia General. You can ask him what he knows about the drug, but it is not much. The Thylacine who injured him has not been seen since the incident."

"Balthazar Baltoson, Zootopia General," Judy said. Got it.

"Do you know anything about this 'Big Mammal'?" Nick asked.

"Not much," Mr. Big admitted. "He operates largely through proxies. No mammal has seen his face. His main enforcer appears to be a goat named Hammerhead Gompers. I have hired a private investigator to dig deeper into this mystery mammal. You might also check with her."

"The PI's name?" Judy asked.

"Janine Snow," Mr. Big said. Nick visibly bristled at this name, his tail growing bottle stiff and bushy.

"I believe that she and your partner know one another," Mr. Big said quietly.

Judy cocked an eye at the fox.

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Alexander "Hammerhead" Gompers was not a patient mammal. He did not like to wait. Particularly for weasels and other 'hired help'. It was beneath him. But he did as he was told. The Big Mammal was not someone you crossed. Not if you wanted all your hooves intact, anyway.

His waiting paid off, as Duke Weaselton slithered out of the nearby alley, with a familiar looking duffel.

"If I had known," Duke said. "That you was using me to get more of these stupid night howler bulbs, I never would have agreed to this job."

"Just give me the bulbs," Gompers snorted.

"Oh nuh-uh!" Duke said. "With my record? If I get caught with these, it's life for sure. Especially if a certain rabbit and fox go sniffing around. I want triple the money or it's no sale."

"The ZPD is of no concern," Gompers said. "Foxes, Rabbits and Cape Buffalo included. The Big Mammal will be dealing with them soon enough. As for your pay, you will take what we agreed upon or ELSE!"

"No Mr. Gompers," the distorted voice from the goat's iPaw said. "That is not how we treat our employees. We give them the respect that they deserve, and they remain loyal to us. Mr. Weaselton has a point. Being caught with this contraband vegetation could cost him a life imprisonment. And we would not want that. So triple our original offer is more than fair."

"Er…Really?" Duke said.

"Of course. Mr. Gompers; pay the nice mammal."

Mr. Gompers snorted angrily, but reached into his pinstriped suite and pulled out a roll of bills, tossing them to Duke, who eagerly unrolled the bills and began flipping through them, counting them.

"The merchandise?" Mr. Gompers asked.

The weasel tossed him the bag. The goat opened it and smiled at the produce inside. To the ignorant, it looked like a bag of moldy onions, but it was no considered the most illegal substance in Zootopia.

"Excellent" The Big Mammal said.

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"So who's Janine Snow?" Judy slyly asked her partner as they exited Tundratown and entered the Rainforest District.

"Old girlfriend," Nick said, his fur still standing on edge. "Old EX-girlfriend. She…Uh…She left some scars."

"Really?" Judy said, unable to wipe the grin off her face. "Well now I definitely have to meet this girl."

"Yeah I'd rather you didn't," Nick said. "So…Why don't you talk to Mr. Baltoson, and I'll go catch up with Janine, on my own."

"Oh no you don't," she said slyly. "It's not every day that I get to meet the famous Nick Wilde's ex-girlfriend."

"Nope that is definitely true," Nick said. "And today is not gonna be that day either. So sorry…But thanks for playing."

"No," Judy said playfully. "Not today. Mr. Big set us up with a meeting _tomorrow._ "

Nick groaned as they exited Tundratown and entered Downtown Zootopia.

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Zootopia General Hospital was actually not that far from Police Precinct One. Just a few blocks away.

The duo had no issue getting in, and Mr. Big had informed Balthazar that the two were coming.

"Not every day that my hospital visitors happen to be Zootopia's finest," Baltoson said.

"Mr. Baltoson," Judy said. "What can you tell us about Primal?"

"I'm the manager of _The Tip of the Iceberg_ nightclub." He said. "It's a very exclusive high end club, and drugs are not welcome there, even before Mr. Big started his 'reforms'."

"Go on," Judy said.

"Three nights ago, a group of marsupial teenagers attempted to get into the nightclub with fake IDs. Typical teen mammal stuff. My bouncer, Kevin was knows how to spot a fake ID a mile away, and these mammals didn't even really look the part—,"

"How could you tell?" Nick asked. "They were marsupials. Marsupials are weird."

"Nick!" Judy snapped. "That's not nice."

"No," Nick said. "It's biology. Marsupials are really weird. With the pouches and the fingers and they age weird too. They look like kids for like half their adult life."

"It's true," Baltoson said. "A lot of mammals have a hard time pinning down the ages of a marsupial when you meet them because of how they age. I think that these kids were counting on that to get in. But Kevin could spot their fake IDs either way. He wouldn't let them in. They tried to force their way in. So I intervened. That's when it got weird. This Thylacine kid…Ever meet one? They look almost canine, but their mouths are weird…They open ridiculously wide…Almost like a snake's jaw unhinging."

"See!" Nick said. "Weird! Marsupials are weird!"

"Well this Thylacine, he pulls out a blue pill, pops it into his mouth…And then suddenly goes crazy. Drops on all fours and lunges at me. Starts clawing and biting me. Kevin runs and calls the cops, but by the time they get here, the marsupials are all gone, even the Thylacine who's been using my arm as a chewtoy. I get sent to the hospital, and the marsupials…long gone."

"It's still the first solid lead we've got on this Primal," Nick said.

"Does your nightclub have security cameras?" Judy asked.

"No," Baltoson said shaking his head. "Sometimes deals would go down that weren't exactly on the up and up, if you catch my drift, so our mutual friend Mr. Big did not have real security cameras installed. All of the ones on the premises were fake."

"I see," Judy said frowning.

"What about other buildings?" Nick asked thoughtfully. If this altercation took place at your front door, do you think that maybe a security cameral from a nearby building caught the action?"

"There's an ATM across the street from _The Tip,_ " Baltoson said. "It might have caught the fight."

"Let's get a warrant and see if we can pull some footage from the ATM," Judy said to Nick. "Thank you for your time, Mr. Baltoson."

"If we get a clear shot of the perps," Nick said. "We might be able to make some headway without talking to Janine."

"Oh we're still talking to Janine," Judy said. "Don't think you're getting out of that one, Nick."

Nick huffed in annoyance. Then paused.

"If we do get a picture," Nick said frowning, "You know that means we're probably going to wind up on Outback Island?"

"Yeah," Judy said. "I figured that out already. It's the biggest marsupial population in Zootopia. So?"

"Ever _been_ to Outback Island?" Nick asked.

"Did the training sims for it back in the academy. Got a lot of different sub-environments on the island, but it's not too different from the Rainforest, Savannah, and Sahara districts."

"Oh I'm not talking about environments," Nick said. "Took the same sims that you did, Carrots. You're not the only top-of-their-class graduate here. No I mean the mammals. Have you ever been to Outback Island and met the mammals there?"

"No," Judy said, clicking her pen.

"Yeah…Like I said…Marsupials are weird."


End file.
